Leeds-based swim cap brand opens John Lewis pop-ups to mark Black History Month

SOUL CAP was founded by Michael Chapman and Tokunbo Ahmed-Salawudeen, who grew up as friends without learning to swim so later decided to learn together and joined an adult swimming class. Here they met a fellow swimmer with afro hair who was struggling with her swimming cap.

Talking to friends and family confirmed that there were few or no suitable swimming caps for swimmers with afro, dreadlock or any kind of voluminous hair, so they decided to create their own.

"Swimming never felt like a normal thing that the people around us were doing when we were kids," said Michael Chapman, co-founder of SOUL CAP. "When we were growing up, swimming was never really seen as a black person's sport. And that meant the kids weren't chasing it, the parents weren't encouraging it, and the teachers at school weren't promoting it.

"And that's strange, when you think about it. Learning to swim isn't just for sport or competition. It's an essential skill, like climbing or running. So it's sad to think there are so many adults out there who don't feel safe or confident in the water – all because they weren't encouraged to learn when they were younger."

SOUL CAP has been selling its larger swimming caps and microfibre hair towels for more than three years online, shipping more than 30,000 products to over 100 countries.

Now the brand is opening pop-up shops at John Lewis & Partners stores in Leeds and Sheffield as part of the John Lewis Pop-Up Initiative, an ongoing collaboration with The Great British Exchange, a national supplier that aims to create stronger links between British producers and retailers.

By providing space for upcoming brands across the UK, John Lewis & Partners aims to help connect smaller businesses with both their local communities and a wider consumer market. The week-long pop-up shops will allow Soul Cap and other brands to design and curate their own branded experience for shoppers, introducing their products and values to an audience that might otherwise not have found them.

SOUL CAP will be demonstrating and selling their hair towels and swim caps as part of the awareness campaign around the topic of Black History Month this October, casting a spotlight on some of the UK’s most promising and successful black-owned British businesses. The SOUL CAP Microfiber Hair Towel has been designed to be extra gentle and absorbent and helps to reduce drying time for those who want to avoid heat damage. The swim caps, meanwhile, come in a range of sizes, from junior to adult.

Chapman and fellow co-director Tokunbo Ahmed-Salawudeen said they hoped to continue with more pop-up locations in the future.

"We've always had brand values that go beyond our products," said Ahmed-Salawudeen. "We're advocates for inclusivity and having a presence in a well-known store as a Black-owned business is a great chance for us to pave the way for brands that are usually underrepresented in mainstream retailers.”

SOUL CAP's pop-up stores are open for business at John Lewis Sheffield until 25 October, and at John Lewis Leeds from 26 October to 1 November.

See www.soulcap.com and Instagram @soulcapofficial.

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